Page 31 of A Crane Family New Year

“A million,” his rough voice answered.

It felt good to laugh with him. The last time she’d laughed in bed she’d been alone, and that had been due to her rotten luck on a dating app. The humorless chuckle had followed her deleting her account permanently.

She’d had fun and fantastic sex. A miracle!

“What’s so funny?” Curiosity lined his face.

“I can’t decide if you helped me keep or break my resolution.”

“Which one was that?”

“I swore I’d have a one-night stand this year. I’m not sure if this qualifies.”

“It doesn’t qualify. We’re meeting for coffee tomorrow, remember?” He kissed the tip of her nose.

“Right. How could I forget?” She couldn’t. She hadn’t. But she also wasn’t sure if he had changed his mind. He might be ready to run now that they’d slept together.

“Is there an ensuite?”

“Over your shoulder.” She tipped her chin toward the attached bathroom behind him.

“I was too focused on you to notice. Give me a second.” He gave her a peck and then rolled out of bed.

She folded her arm under her head and watched his lean form. Zander was muscular and strong, with impressive biceps and calf muscles. Not to mention his stomach. She’d played her tongue along his abs earlier, and then lower to a penis that had far exceeded her expectations.

Yowza.

She covered her mouth to smother a giggle. A literal giggle.

Fortune had finally smiled upon her, and in the least likely place. She hadn’t expected to do more than show up, drink a glass of champagne, and ride home happy that the year was behind her. Now she’d had sex with the hottest guy she’d ever laid eyes on, and they were having coffee tomorrow.

Her smile fell. She shouldn’t get too far ahead of herself. No matter how much flirting they’d done about coffee and breakfast, there was a chance that tonight ended up only being tonight.

What she and Zander shared, aside from mind-blowing sex, was an online relationship that surpassed casual chatting. Of course, they’d covered the basics: paintings and photography, and their favorite foods, but they’d also shared stories from their childhoods, and what scared them most. They were friends, in a sense.

Even though they’d shared a friendship and a few intimate secrets, she had no reason to believe that the man who’d just blown her mind in bed was interested in starting an actual relationship. He’d moved to this city, what, two minutes ago? He hadn’t found his footing yet.

And what about her? She had been a sassy single for a long, long time. As much as she enjoyed his company, tonight had been a champagne-fueled whirlwind wrapped in a New Year’s Eve spell. There was no guarantee any of it would last past the stroke of midnight.

“One step at a time, girl,” she warned herself.

Holding the duvet over her body, she sat up in bed and ruffled her hair. Behind the closed bathroom door, the sink turned on and then off.

They should probably go back to the party and make an appearance before too long. Not that they had chaperones, but Chloe knew that Isa had been keeping an eye on her. Hell, Rachel had probably noticed when Chloe and Zander ran off the dance floor. And what about Jaylyn? Maybe she’d given up on the keyboardist and was currently searching for her brother.

Hand to her forehead, Chloe sighed. Reality hadn’t wasted any time crashing into her fantasy world, had it?

The bathroom door opened and out walked Zander, completely naked. The man was as glorious from the front as he’d been from the back.

“Uh-oh.” He eased down on the edge of the bed and touched the space between her eyebrows. “What happened? I left you sated and smiling and now you look worried.”

“Is there anything you don’t notice?”

“Plenty.” He pulled in a breath, and she fully expected him to say something like This was fun, but… Instead, he said, “I like you, Chloe Andrews.”

“I like you too,” she confessed. They shared a not-uncomfortable moment of eye contact. “I was thinking we should show our faces at the party. And I should probably check mine.” She swiped her finger beneath her eyes where no doubt her mascara had transferred.

“Your face,” he said, taking her hand and kissing it, “is even more beautiful than before we came in here. Trust me.”

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